Harira, a Moroccan staple.

The Lcrésé family are famous amongst the locals in Marrakech, for their positive presence in the community.

In recent years, they established a successful restaurant, Atay; which is a popular hub amongst residents & tourists. They serve both traditional and continental dishes which are all prepared by their Moroccan chef, using fresh and locally sourced produce. Atay is located very near to both Riad Star and Riad Cinnamon and can be located easily by using the Marrakech riad travel App
Next door to Atay however, you can find their original eatery. This humble and open space is the hot spot for harira (beldi soup), which is served traditionally as a pre-breakfast appetiser or an evening meal starter.

The small cafe serves two types of harira, one red (harira hamra) which is made using fresh vegetables, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, pasta, plus a whole host of fresh herbs and spices.
The other harira which is served, is white (harira beda) and more plain in flavour. It is made with fine semolina, olive oil, grains, cumin and salt.

Harira is the breakfast of choice for many hard-working Moroccan people, as it is packed full of protein and nutrients.
It is also commonly eaten as the first meal at Iftar, during the Ramadan month. It is easy for the body to digest, and rich in vitamins that you need to make energy.

It is possible to find harira on the menu in most tourist restaurants; however it is highly recommended that you go to a street vendor such as the Lcrésé family joint, for an authentic flavour and experience. Here the harira is made in the proper way, left to cook and reduce slowly overnight without any corners being cut.

A bowl of hot harira & a cup of spiced coffee will set you back by around 3 1/2 dirhams.
You can also sit in the recently renovated space and watch the world go by, or perhaps even take your harira to the terrace of Atay and order some tea.

The best thing about this particular harira vendor, is that they provide free harira & coffee to those who are unable to pay for their meal. At 4am they begin serving a free breakfast to the street cleaners who work hard to keep Marrakech so beautiful.